It took more than 15 years but at long last, as of this week, I’ve finally become accustomed to Tarja Turunen’s vocals.
Nightwish still has its occasional major annoyances (“Wish I Had an Angel”, I’m looking at you…) but at least now, the operatic-style vocals are something I can enjoy, rather than endure.
Just thought I’d share that with everyone.
Commenting only to say that I read this thread while Nightwish played on my Pandora.
(Hey, I rather like Wish I had an Angel…)
You don’t like I Wish I Had An Angel? Why not?
I’m also listening to Nightwish on Pandora.
There’s a complete live concert of theirs on YouTube. It’s the Imaginarium tour. Sure looked different than when i saw them at the Warfield in San Francisco. Big difference in a theater rather than a stadium.
I’m not a fan of songs that begin with an a cappella version of the chorus. It’s probably Bon Jovi’s fault.
On the other hand, I used to skip over “Wishmaster” every single time – but once the vocals clicked, the song suddenly shifted from incredibly annoying to totally awesome. 
Tarja is still tops (I got weaned on singers like Kate Bush and Annie Haslam, so Tarja required no real adjustment).
Oddly, I prefer Annette over Floor-the latter leaves me feeling cold for some reason-her singing seems too passionless and overly mannered or such.
Funny you mentioned Kate Bush, her voice always used to drive me up the wall. I should listen to her stuff again to see if anything’s changed.
Never had any problem with Renaissance, though.